Time Graphing Today’s Watch Universe - December 31, 2025
As 2025 draws to a close, today’s edition of Time Graphing Today’s Watch Universe feels appropriately reflective while still keeping one eye firmly on what’s coming next. The big theme running through the news is price pressure, with Rolex and Tudor set to introduce increases later this week that will ripple across the market just as collectors reset their expectations for 2026. Rising gold prices, inflation, and tariffs remain the unavoidable backdrop, and Corder’s forward-looking column makes the case that brands will be forced to balance higher retail pricing with tighter dealer margins, sharper retail strategies, and a growing reliance on certified pre-owned programs to maintain momentum.
That pre-owned shift was underscored by Bob’s Watches opening a luxury secondhand boutique at JFK, a telling signal that authenticated resale has become mainstream enough to live comfortably alongside duty-free perfume and boarding gates. At the same time, Watches of Switzerland CEO Brian Duffy’s interview showed how scale players are broadening their identity, pairing commercial growth with long-term philanthropy in ways that strengthen brand culture as much as public perception.
Collectors worried about Swiss New Year price hikes were also given an escape route, with renewed attention on independent makers from France, Britain, and beyond, where distinctive design and storytelling can still undercut traditional prestige pricing. Expert predictions for 2026 reinforced that sense of divergence, pointing to unconventional case shapes, overlooked vintage segments, and a heating-up pre-owned market for names like Patek Philippe, Rolex, and A. Lange & Söhne, where condition and originality will matter more than ever.
On the product front, heritage and innovation continued to share the stage. Bulova closed out its 150th anniversary with a documentary and commemorative releases that tied American watch history to modern relevance, while a deep dive into the Omega Speedmaster Alaska Project reminded readers how experimental tool watches can evolve into cult classics. Historical storytelling carried through with Ruth Belville’s remarkable business of timekeeping, a reminder that precision once depended as much on people as on technology.
Year-end lists rounded out the mood, recapping the most memorable watches of 2025, from bold all-black designs to standout calendar complications and emotionally resonant editor picks that balanced heritage with experimentation. New and recently reviewed watches kept the present tense alive, including refined independents like Laurent Ferrier, playful and culturally rooted releases from Swatch and Raketa, and serious tool-watch value from Synchron, alongside hands-on reviews of highly artistic creations from Stollenwurm and the closing chapter of the Vingt-8 era at Voutilainen.
Before we turn the page, a quick reminder that Rolex and Tudor price increases arrive imminently, making this final stretch of 2025 a meaningful one for anyone still on the fence. Most importantly, thank you for spending part of your year here. Wishing all of you a happy, healthy, and safe New Year. The next issue of Buying Time will land on Monday, January 5, 2026, and we’ll be ready to get right back into it. -Michael Wolf
